As the Red Wings rolled to a 7-3 win Wednesday over the hapless Buffalo Sabres, it was difficult to discern which emotion was more appropriate: laughing or crying.
Several Detroit players padded the stats on their hockeydb.com pages. There were a couple fights at the end of the game. Yet, there was a cloud hanging over Little Caesars Arena. It spelled out, “Where has that been?”
The Red Wings fell back into every bad habit imaginable after the 4 Nations break. It began by blowing late leads and not securing all-important regulation wins before morphing into a six-game losing streak, which followed an eerily similar pattern as the previous two late-season collapses.
And it was compounded by the tone-deaf moves and comments at the NHL trade deadline by general manager Steve Yzerman, whose demeanor can best be transcribed by two words: 'Oh well.' He was Judge Smails talking to his goofy nephew in 'Caddy Shack' with his, "You’re going to get Petr Mrazek and Craig Smith, and you’ll like it," attitude.
The built-in excuse is the difficulty of Detroit’s schedule down the stretch. Here’s a memo to the Red Wings’ organization, top-to-bottom: Nobody cares.
The Red Wings making the playoffs is important. It costs an inordinate amount of money to attend an NHL game. It remains, by far, the most box office-driven of this nation’s four professional sports.
Yzerman’s drafting has been brilliant, and should ultimately lead to long-term genuine Stanley Cup contention. For that, Yzerman, frankly, hasn’t gotten enough credit. What matters most, however, is the NHL team. It’s all the vast majority of fans ever see or care about.
And participating in the playoffs would help the development of the Red Wings’ core. That’s not only Yzerman draft picks Lucas Raymond, Moritz Seider, Marco Kasper and Simon Edvinsson, but also Dylan Larkin and Alex DeBrincat, who have each only played in one just postseason long ago.
The process isn’t just about understanding what it takes to make the playoffs, but what it involves to advance when there. That takes experience.
Throw in the DeBrincat trade and Yzerman has done excellent work building a young core, but he has been subpar in terms of adding veteran talent. He has become quiet on the trade front, and suddenly cautious when promoting young talent, especially goalie Sebastian Cossa. The notion the Red Wings will go into next season set at goalie with a 38-year-old Cam Talbot and a 34-year-old Petr Mrazek is absurd, but evidently that’s the plan. As solid as the top of the Red Wings’ lineup is developing, the bottom third is dreadful. It’s why the penalty kill is awful.
This isn’t, though, so much about roster decisions by the GM as a collective mindset. The Red Wings find ways to lose at key points. It’s become part of their fabric. A season matters. It can’t be all about tomorrow or it will never arrive.
There are plenty of games left this season, and the Red Wings are right in the thick of the Eastern Conference wild card race. They must play like they desperately "need" to get into the playoffs, not just "want" it. Patience is a virtue only to the point that it becomes a hindrance.
Just get it done. No excuses. The Red Wings’ and Yzerman’s credibility is on the line.